The Story Behind the Coffee Served at BCC
BCC joins synagogues around the US in ensuring that our purchasing choices help lift up the farmers who grow and harvest our coffee. We’re taking the Fair Trade Coffee Pledge!
Fair Trade Judaica and T’ruah have partnered with Equal Exchange to form a Jewish Fair Trade Partnership, through which we purchase our coffee (and tea, cocoa, snack foods) at wholesale prices, and a small commission is given back to support the fair trade work.
Fair trade is a movement that promotes economic partnerships based on equality, justice and sustainable environmental practices. Fair trade connects consumers in the West with producers from other countries, by emphasizing fair value return, environmental protection, human and workers’ rights.
A key tenet of Judaism is to “pursue justice” – Tzedek Tzedek Tirdof. We can pursue justice by making consumer choices that promote economic fairness for those who produce our products around the globe.
“You shall not abuse a needy or destitute laborer, whether a fellow countryman or a stranger in one of the communities of your land. You must pay him his wages on the same day, before the sun sets, for he is needy and he risks his life for it.”(Deut. 24:14-15)
The lesson here hinges on the phrase “risks his life for it.” Poor laborers depend on earning a decent wage in order to obtain the simple necessities of life. If an artisan or farmer works hard to produce a product that we want and need, we have an obligation to ensure that the farmer and his or her family receive sufficient income to live a sustainable life.
BCC has been serving Fair Trade for over 12 years now. Until a while ago we supported an Ugandan coffee farm community of Christians, Jewish & Muslims that make Delicious Peace coffee by buying coffee from them (their Delicious Peace also inspired a movie ), but recently we have moved to support a few coffee makers in Los Angeles.
